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Niles Paul will be the first to tell you that last year was a failure of epic proportions for him as well as his team. The tight end and special teams ace prides himself for being that one player that, if you needed someone to protect you in a dark ally, it would be him. In other words, if you needed a teammate to have your back through thick and thin, he is that guy. He is not one to talk about a teammate behind their back if there is a problem but rather, will confront them about it man-to-man.
Last season left some lingering feelings about where he stood as more than just a special teams player. Remember, this is the same guy who was once hailed as a “Shannon-Sharpe-type-tight-end” by former head coach Mike Shanahan… the same coach that helped get Sharpe into the NFL Hall of Fame. Paul never asked for that label. It was simply thrust on to him. And it stuck in the minds of the fans who remember Sharpe being almost unstoppable at the position.
Combine the unwanted label with the issue of the faulty special teams play (which Paul is considered the mainstay of) and one ends up opened to pot-shots. Fans will turn on their favorite players in a heart beat when things are not going as they think they should.
In Paul’s defense, it must be stated he didn’t give up back breaking returns against Dallas or Kansas City. If you look at the film, the former University of Nebraska Cornhusker is normally one of the first people down the field, if not the first. The Redskins’ special teams unit was dreadful on so many levels. From an injured rookie returner in Chris Thompson (he tore his labrum in the preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and played with virtually one arm until a surgery was way over due and finally performed after week 8 of the regular season)… to having then-Redskins’ receiver Josh Morgan returning kicks/punts when that was clearly not his strength… to a unit built with rookies who may not have bought into the importance of special teams… to a flawed system being taught by then-special-teams-coach Keith Burns (no matter how you look at it, Burns could not reach all 11 of his guys and it showed on the field)… the unit finished the season having given up three punt returns and one kickoff return for touchdowns. This may have been the most porous unit ever that ever took the field in a a professional football game. They couldn’t tackle, couldn’t block and couldn’t cover. Even the scheme was wrong. You name it – they probably were not very good at it.
The amount of time being designated to special teams in this year’s training camp indicates its importance to the new coaching staff. And for Paul it couldn’t have come faster. He, as well as his teammate,s feel great about getting back to work and vanquishing the stench of last year. His mental state and confidence are at an all-time high.
“I feel good Lake,” he said today. “Training camp is about having more good days than bad. I think I have been doing that so far… keeping up with my playbook and keeping my body right.”
When Paul came into the league he excelled under former special teams coach Danny Smith. Smith was a guy that the players loved playing for because of his passion as well as his blunt honesty… not just when things went south but when handing out praise when it was needed as well. The comradery of this season’s unit is high even though it’s still in its early stages.
New special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica brings a high energy approach that will allow for players to make plays. This has not gone unnoticed by Paul.
“I saw the difference the first day when we had [linebacker] Adam [Hayward] and [safety] Akeem [Jordan] in there,” he told me after practice. “You get those guys out there and we’re talking, we’re moving… everybody wants to be out here, everybody wants to make plays. We’re competing. That’s the biggest thing about it and our special teams has taken a complete 180 from what I felt it was at this point last year.”
Paul was considered one of the teams stalwarts last year despite the disastrous season. Although it may not have shown in the end results, Paul’s heart was never to be questioned. This has always endeared him to his teammates and that was why he was considered the special teams captain last year. I asked him if it is a role that he relishes again this year.
“You know it just depends on how my team views me,” he answered. “We have a lot of different new guys and we have a lot of vets in there like Adam and Akeem. I kind of look to those guys in certain situations and they look to me too so we all kind of feed off of each other. So it’s all on the team and who they feel should be in that situation.”
He also has embraced the “drama-less” nature of this year’s training camp. There are no more side stories being reported and the focus is all about football now. Paul re-iterated those sentiments as well.
“Drama free,” he explained. “We’re having a good time, man. You just see a bunch of guys out here having a good time and that’s what professional football is all about, man.”
With so many changes in this years version of training camp, one thing that hasn’t changed and that is Paul’s zest to somehow be involved in a scuffle or two. Playing with passion is what the other 52 men on this year’s roster need to bring to the table… each and every practice and each and every game. During today’s morning session, Paul and linebacker Darryl Sharpton were caught up in a scuffle. It wasn’t the kind to cause any lingering feelings or bad blood but rather, just two guys going after it.
“It was nothing but two guys going hard and no big deal,” he said about the scrap. “[The type of] things that happen in football all of the time.”
Paul does not just want to be known as a special teams tough-guy. He wants to prove to people that he can be the tight-end that Shanahan envisioned and, by all counts, that new head coach Jay Gruden has given him the opportunity to display. All three quarterbacks have found Paul on several nice plays since camp has started. He has been positioned all over the field and has caught passes ranging from intermediate to deep post routes. He feels that incumbent starting quarterback Robert Griffin, III, backup Kirk Cousins and even third-stringer Colt McCoy have looked his way and he has tried to make the most of it.
“Kirk and Rob and Colt give me opportunities to make plays” he told me.
The receiver-turned-tight-end has embraced his opportunity to get the same routes and passes that his fellow position mates Jordan Reed, Logan Paulsen and rookies Ted Bolzer (Indiana University); and second-year player Mike Caussin (James Madison University) are getting.
“It’s a very tight and friendly offense,” Paul said and then counted off his teammates. “You can see Jordan Reed is getting a lot of balls, Logan is getting a lot of balls, I’m getting a lot of balls, Ted [Bolser], Mike [Compton]. So you know its about us making plays and showing coach we can do this.”
I have also been impressed with Paul’s willingness to stay after practice and work more on his craft. He has consistently been one of the last players to leave the practice field — either working on his hands with the coaches, using the passing machines or helping go over techniques with the younger players. He also has made it a point to talk with fans and sign as many autographs as possible.
Niles Paul is living in the moment so much that he asked me after several days of camp how long had I been there in Richmond. I told him I’d been here everyday, sometimes even standing very close to him on the field after practices or walkthroughs. His reply was apologetic and he explained that he has been “totally focused.”
He need not apologize to me for doing his job. In 2014, that focus should pay heavy dividends while he continues his development as a tight-end and special teams mainstay.
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